


Bruises Left Behind

by wolfstsrshipper



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Child Abuse, child abuse mention, just what happenes because of it, not shown, referenced abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:48:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25553845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfstsrshipper/pseuds/wolfstsrshipper
Summary: Sirius comes back from home, and Remus finally catches the bruises on him.
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 1
Kudos: 58





	Bruises Left Behind

Sirius not once saw Regulus over winter break, and that always caused him to have terrible bouts of excessive worrying.

In cases like what had happened over break, The Black Brothers had a secret place to meet up at each of the main locations they tended to stay in. At Hogwarts, it was one of the emptied classrooms in the upper corridor.

He hopped into the shower, tenderly cleaning the bruises he earned on his visit home. After climbing up the stairs to see Regulus and then again across steeper ones to get to his dorm, he was exhausted and his muscles ached terribly in protest. It felt like his bones were about to snap into two, and his brain was throbbing.

This was a different type of pain that he knew a pain potion would do very little to help with. It was the lingering pain that comes with being crucio’d one too many times. He knew, eventually, it would start to mess with his nervous and circulatory system.

But that was a problem for another day.

As long as it didn’t happen to his little brother, he was willing to take that toll. 

He turned off the water faucet, instantly missing the warmth that seemed to relax his body and soothe his stinging “cuts.” His headache even started to slowly throb again. 

He stepped out of the shower, wrapped a towel around his waist, and grabbed his quidditch jersey sitting on the countertop. 

If it were up to him, he would skip practice and go to sleep, but the only time Sirius had ever done that was when he was extremely sick. And Sirius never fakes being sick, he hates feeling weak and powerless. Those were always the worst weeks at home. He was always punished for being ill because that meant he needed a little more care and attention, and if you needed care and attention, that meant you were more of a burden than usual. 

So, today, he would just have to grit his teeth and make it through practice. 

Because there was _no_ way he was going to let the other Marauders know about any of this. Sirius knew they wouldn’t understand. 

He stood there and stared at his reflection in the mirror for a long time. He had bruises lining his ribs. He used to have physical cuts from where the skin broke, but his parents had a spell that healed them while still allowing the pain to remain as if it was still there. They stung and burned, and when things rubbed against them, they felt a million times worse. Walburga and Orion Black were careful about leaving any permanent mark.

This was also something where a pain potion would do nothing to help. 

On his shoulders, he had four small purple bruises, and on his shoulder blades, he had a slightly larger, more oval-shaped one. Sirius contorted his arm and wrist to an odd angle so his fingers could match with the bruise left by his mother. He hated how hard she grabbed his shoulder, like she was trying to rip out the muscle underneath. 

He turned around to glance at his back in the mirror. It drove Sirius mad that his mind was convinced there were gashes there, but his back was smooth and unmarked, at least scar and cut wise.

He stared at the quidditch jersey in his hands and slowly raised his arms to slide it over his head. Granted, it was very difficult to put it on, as any arm movement upward was torture on his rib cage, since that was where the worst of it was. 

“Padfoot…?” _Shit_! He knew that voice. 

It was Remus. 

“Where did those bruises come from…?” Sirius gritted his teeth and swallowed his groan as he shoved his shirt down. 

“They uh…. it’s… it’s a long story. It doesn’t matter. I have to go.” Sirius went to move, but Remus blocked his way out.

“You can’t be serious.” 

“I’m always Sir-”

“Not now. You just… you can’t go to practice, not like _this_.” He gestured to Sirius’s torso. He took a step forward and looked into his eyes as he all but pleaded: “ _Please_.”

“‘M fine. Really.” He grabbed his pants and trousers off the counter and slipped them on under his towel, trying to go at - what would be considered - a normal pace, but also trying to not wince or groan. Maybe if he acted normal, Remus would drop it. As hard as he tried, he still couldn’t stop the low whimper that escaped his throat. Maybe it went unnoticed. But when he stood up again and turned towards the door, he knew by looking in Remus’s eyes it hadn’t. “I must get going.” Sirius stepped past and opened the door to leave. 

“No you’re not fine, _please_ , Sirius, _please_ stay.” 

“I have practice.” 

“Sirius, _stop_ this!” He gently grabbed his shoulder, making Sirius wince, and turned him around, raising his shirt up quickly, but gently. Sirius flinched back, out of his reach, hands instincively going up to protect his face. He dropped them before Remus's eyes met his. “Who did this to you? What happened? _Please_ , talk to me.”

“No one, I’m fine. I… I have to go.” 

“Fine.” Remus picked up the half-empty shampoo bottle that was resting on the sink counter. “Catch.” He said plainly as he tossed it to Sirius. 

Sirius caught it with one hand at lightning speed. Clearly, his reflexes were completely intact, but at the quick arm motion upward, he winced inward and used his other hand to grab his side, dropping the bottle. “You’re not going to practice. How the hell are you supposed to do your job as a chaser if you can’t even catch and hold something at less than a fourth a quaffle's weight? You’re going to bed, _now_.”

“I’ll work it out, I’m fine.” Sirius snapped, turning around once more and opening the door once more, but Remus was there in an instant, closing the door again, looking slightly angry. He couldn't help take a step back. Retreating from an angry person blocking the door was instinctual. He felt trapped, but his eyes remained on Remus. _It's only Remus._ He told himself.

“Stop this! You’re just hurting yourself!” He used the hand that wasn’t pressing and keeping the door shut to gently grab Sirius’s chin and turned his chin so their eyes met. “What would you be saying to me if the roles were reversed?” He whispered. Sirius remained silent. “I’ll talk to James. But for now, you’re not going to practice. Why don’t you take your shirt off-”

“ _Oh_ , Mr. _Lu-_ ” Sirius tried.

“And we can use some of the healing salve to-” Remus pressed on. 

“It won’t work,” Sirius mumbled. 

“What do you mean?”

“It won’t work. Potions and salves…. Don’ work.” He was so quiet, even as close as Remus was he had to strain to hear it.

“How do you know…?” Remus used the same tone and volume as Sirius had, only his was filled with more hesitance.

“Doesn’ ever.” 

“Sirius… how long … how long has this…. ?” He was almost afraid to ask. 

“Dunno.” Five years old. “Doesn’t matter.” Four, maybe. He didn’t remember how old he was when his mother first locked him in his room for days after hitting him hard enough to tear the skin in his cheek. At times he hated his eiditic memory. 

“Yes, it does. It _does_. How can you not see that?” A lot of things were clicking into place now. “Padfoot… does this… does happen at home..?” Sirius looked away and down to the floor. 

“I can’t talk about it. You wouldn’t understand.” 

“Just try.” 

“I can’t,” Sirius said, more firmly and with tears in his eyes that would never fall. “I _can’t_ , Remus. I won’t go to practice …but I also won’t talk about it.”

Remus’s hand fell from the door, and Sirius opened it and left, grabbing a pair of clothes out of his trunk before slipping into his bed and pulling the curtains closed.

**Author's Note:**

> a tumblr ask


End file.
